Perron, Copp, Chiarot determined to accelerate Red Wings rebuild

David Perron was listening, especially considering who was on the other end of the line.

"Any time a guy like Steve Yzerman calls you, it captures your attention big time. You want to hear what his plan is all about," the forward said Wednesday of the Detroit Red Wings general manager. "With some of the singings that happened today, they're ready to take the next step in their evolution as a team and I wanted to be a part of that."
The Red Wings made several key signings when free agency began Wednesday, including Perron (two years, $4.75 million average annual value), forward Andrew Copp (five years, $5.625 AAV) and defenseman Ben Chiarot (four years, $4.75 million AAV).
The recent acquisitions said they believe they can help accelerate Detroit's rebuild. The Red Wings have missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs for six straight seasons.
"With the additions today, that would be the only way you can look at it," Chiarot said. "The guys on the team, the younger guys are getting into mid-20s now. Then you add more veteran guys like myself (31), Perron (34), Copp (28), we can take that next step."
Yzerman seemed a bit more cautious on the Red Wings' progress.
"Time will tell. I'm optimistic that we're progressing, but the plan really hasn't changed," Yzerman said Thursday. "I'm sticking with what I intend to do -- keep younger guys and be patient with them, keep our draft picks and continue to build this way."
In addition to adding Perron, Coop and Chiarot, the Red Wings also signed forward Dominik Kubalik (two years, $2.5 million AAV), defenseman Olli Maatta (one year, $2.25 million) and defenseman Mark Pysyk (one year, $850,000).
Copp set NHL career highs in goals (21), assists (32) and points (53) in 72 regular-season games for the Winnipeg Jets and New York Rangers, who acquired him in a trade with the Jets on March 21. He had 14 points (six goals, eight assists) in 20 Stanley Cup Playoff games to help the Rangers reach the Eastern Conference Final. Perron had 57 points (27 goals, 30 assists) in 67 regular-season games and 13 points (nine goals, four assists) in 12 playoff games for the St. Louis Blues.
Chiarot had 18 points (seven goals, 11 assists) in 54 games for the Montreal Canadiens before being traded to the Florida Panthers on March 16. He had eight points (two goals, six assists) in 20 regular-season games and one assist in 10 playoff games. Kubalik, who became an unrestricted free agent after the Chicago Blackhawks did not tender him a qualifying offer, had 32 points (15 goals, 17 assists) in 78 games.
Copp said he sees a potential similarity between the Red Wings and his previous two teams; the Jets didn't qualify for the playoffs in back-to-back seasons before advancing to the Western Conference Final in 2018. The Rangers, four years after announcing their rebuild, lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning in the conference final last season.
"You never know when jump will be there," Copp said. "But I have a lot of faith in where this team's headed and the talent that's come up the last couple of years."
That talent includes defenseman Moritz Seider, a 21-year-old defenseman who won the Calder Trophy voted as NHL rookie of the year after he had 50 points (seven goals, 43 assists) in 82 games. Lucas Raymond finished third on the Red Wings in scoring as a rookie last season; the 20-year-old forward had 57 points (23 goals, 34 assists) in 82 games.
Detroit forward Dylan Larkin led the team in scoring. Larkin, who turns 26 on July 30 and is Red Wings captain, had 69 points (31 goals, 38 assists) in 71 games.
"I think we've improved the team, but we have to go on the ice in September and play in October," Yzerman said. "I think we've addressed some needs.
"I'm hoping we're a better team. I think we're progressing slowly in this rebuilding of the Red Wings."
Yzerman showed he can reshape a team when he was Lightning GM from 2010-18. Under his watch, Tampa Bay drafted forward Nikita Kucherov, goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy, hired Jon Cooper as coach, convinced captain Steven Stamkos to re-sign for eight more seasons in 2016, and acquired defenseman Mikhail Sergachev in a trade with the Montreal Canadiens.
The Lightning reached the Stanley Cup Final in 2015, then won back-to-back championships in 2020 and 2021 and advanced to the Final in 2022, where they lost to the Colorado Avalanche in six games.
"Not to take anything away from [current Lightning GM Julien BriseBrois], but Steve was there for a while and drafted a bunch of guys and turned that into a big part of where they're at today," Copp said. "So, I think that trust stems from there."
The players seem determined to bring the Red Wings back to prominence. Yzerman said he is certainly hoping for a more competitive squad.
"Are we good enough to make the playoffs next year? I don't know," Yzerman said. "I'm hopeful that we'll score more goals, we'll give up fewer goals, I'm hoping our power play will be a little bit better (26th in NHL last season), our penalty killing is a little bit better (last in NHL), our goals-against is a little bit better (3.78, second-most in NHL) and that pushes us higher up in the standings."